High School Math Can Be Playful, Too

When students reach high school math, play typically disappears from the curriculum. But Kathy Sun is discovering new ways to bring play into high school math.  A student’s math identity is usually focused on procedural proficiency rather than a broader view of mathematical contributions and community, said Sun, a researcher and professor at Santa Clara…

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Microschools with a World Vision: Insights from the First International Micro School Conference

By: Lizette Valles Recently, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC, served as a vibrant venue for the first-ever International Micro School Conference hosted by Microschools.com, Mysa, and Prenda. This event gathered a global community of microschool leaders, educators, researchers, social entrepreneurs, and innovators, all sharing a common goal: to explore…

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Learning from Long Shadows

My decade-long involvement in shadowing projects across the country has taught me that the average percentage of time that multilingual learners (MLLs) are speaking is often 5–10%. This is in contrast to what researchers like Pauline Gibbons (2015) tell us—that MLLs should be spending at least 30% of their school day in academic talk. This…

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Implementing a Bilingual Authorization Program

In Fall 2022, Whittier College’s Teacher Education program launched their online bilingual authorization program (BILA). In year 1, the program was initially fully asynchronous, but after surveying BILA students mid-way through the semester, they provided feedback that they wanted more synchronous instruction with their instructors. Whittier College students are used to personalized and small group…

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Developing Intrinsic Motivation with Students

Reading Time: 3 minutes How could developing intrinsic motivation improve student engagement, and how can teachers do it? Intrinsic motivation, pivotal in developmental psychology, refers to engaging in activities purely for the inherent satisfaction they provide, rather than external rewards. Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic motivation In the research paper, ‘What is intrinsic motivation? A typology of…

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Advancing Online Graduate Education: Integrating Quality Matters Feedback to Enhance Course Templates 

In the dynamic landscape of online education, the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications online graduate programs (UF CJC Online) stands at the forefront of innovation and quality. With a commitment to ensuring educational excellence and student success, in 2020, UF CJC Online developed a comprehensive course design strategy to elevate its online…

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Small Schools, Big Umbrella: Expanding, Defining and Scaling the Microschool Ecosystem

Microschools, while not a new concept, are currently garnering increasing attention as an educational innovation. Microschools are small learning environments with typically less than 150 students that offer personalized and student-centered learning experiences. Teachers hungry for more autonomy, families seeking personalized learning, and the constraints of education budgets are all fueling the demand for microschools….

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